Let’s take an informal poll! Just HOW sexist and condescending was R. Kelly attitude toward this Huffpost Live interviewer, before walking off the set in a snit?
The man responsible for the oft-sung singing show staple, “I Believe I Can Fly,” has been accused over the years, by many woman, of having sex with them while they were underaged.
While out promoting his latest album, The Buffet, Kelly mistook Huffpost Live for an entertainment site that would throw him softballs. When host Caroline Modarressy-Tehrani asked about the allegations, as they pertained to his fans and his career, he became agitated, insisting he only wanted to discuss “positive” topics.
The questions, such as what he would say to fans who criticize him personally and how the sexual content of his lyrics relate to his life, were relevant to his music and career. However, the singer continually refused to answer them, insisting he did not want to talk about “negativity.” He continually interrupted the host, not allowing her to ask follow-up questions.
Kelly eventually threatened to walk out, questioning the host’s intelligence and making condescending remarks about her looks. “If any other negative thing comes at me out of your mouth…,” he warned, “I’m going to get up, I’m going to walk out, and I’m going to go to McDonalds…hopefully the McRib is out…”
There were the typical references to himself in the third person, and the boasting about his many, many fans who aren’t bothered at all by “negative” reports. When the host asked him about the sexual content of his lyrics, Kelly bristled. “I did not come here to get interrogated, I did not come here for a deposition,” followed by snidely asking her if she knew what a deposition was. When Kelly accused the host of disrespecting him, she held her ground, insisting she was merely asking questions about his lyrics.
“If you don’t believe you’re disrespecting me, then that’s the level of your intelligence,” Kelly said. After asking the host some bizarre questions about whether she got drunk or not, he granted her one more question. She went right back to pressing him on his fans’ reactions to his alleged crimes, at which point, Kelly ripped of his mic and walked out.
Watch the aborted interview here.
